Next Monday China celebrates National Day as the country prepares for a political transition, one that will see the new leaders taking the helm of perhaps the world's most dynamic society. It seems an opportune time to look at life in 中国, the Middle Kingdom. Change and progress have come at a dizzying pace in the last couple of decades, making the People's Republic of China politically, culturally, economically, and militarily a power player on the world stage. Many issues challenge the incoming government. A territorial dispute with Japan over some islands off Taiwan is opening old wounds from WWII. A corruption and murder scandal involving a high ranking official comes at an embarrassing time. And the country's juggernaut economy finds itself in the 11th straight month of stagnation. But at the same time, an increasingly colorful society celebrates the continued vibrant awakening transforming the largest population in the world. Gathered here are images providing a glimpse of life from many parts of the country, including Hong Kong - which has now been under mainland control for 15 years. -- Lane Turner (44 photos total)

An actor performs a re-enactment of the Red Army battles and the beginning of the Long March in Jinggangshan, China on September 20, 2012. In 1927, communist leaders fled with a few thousand supporters to the hills of Jinggangshan, hounded and outnumbered by Nationalist forces. (Carlos Barria/Reuters)

Liu Yang, China's first female astronaut, waves as she comes out from the re-entry capsule of China's Shenzhou 9 spacecraft in Siziwang Banner, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region on June 29, 2012. China's Shenzhou 9 spacecraft put the country's first woman in space and completed a manned docking test critical to its goal of building a space station by 2020. (China Daily/Reuters) #

Rescuers and relatives stop a woman from committing suicide by jumping off a building in Zhanjiang, China on August 14, 2012. The woman tried to commit suicide after killing her nephew following a family dispute. (Stringer/Reuters) #

A Tibetan demonstrates his riding skill during a traditional horse race to celebrate the annual Ongkor Festival for the harvest time in Yumbu-Lha Khang in west China's Tibet Autonomous Region on August 1, 2012. (Associated Press) #

A parent carries a school desk as a child carries a stool for the first day of school in a village in Macheng, China, where more than 3000 other students have to bring their own desks to school. Chinese children spend an average of 8.6 hours a day in school, with some spending 12 hours in the classroom, according to a 2007 survey. (Stringer/AFP/GettyImages) #

Tibetan Buddhists and tourists view a huge Thangka, a religious silk embroidery or painting displaying the Buddha portrait, during the Shoton Festival at Zhaibung Monastery in Lhasa on August 17, 2012. (China Daily/Reuters)#

Relatives of Hong Kong activists stand at the windows of their boat in Hong Kong's Victoria harbor on August 22, 2012 following its return from Japan. The pro-Beijing activists who sailed to the disputed Senkuki or Diaoyu islands were deported from Japan on August 17 after landing on the island. (Philippe Lopez/AFP/GettyImages)#

Hong Kong Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying (center) opens a ballot box at a ballot counting center in Hong Kong on September 10, 2012. Hong Kong voters went to the polls on September 9 in legislative elections seen as a crucial test for the Beijing-backed government, as calls for full democracy grow and disenchantment with Chinese rule surges. (Philippe Lopez/AFP/GettyImages)#

Protesters hold their position during an eviction process from the HSBC bank headquarters in Hong Kong on September 11, 2012. Hong Kong "Occupy" protesters scuffled with bailiffs who began evicting them from their camp. (Philippe Lopez/AFP/GettyImages)#

A demonstrator shouts near the Japanese consulate during a protest on the 81st anniversary of Japan's invasion of China, in Shanghai on September 18, 2012. Japanese businesses shut hundreds of stores and plants and the country's embassy suspended services in China as anti-Japan protests raged. (Carlos Barria/Reuters)#